Christmas: God Moved First

But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth his Son, – Gal 4:4

I know we say it all the time, but the Bible doesn’t really say that we can move God by our Faith, does it? It does say that faith pleases Him (Heb 11:6), and our Lord was impressed when Gentiles exhibited it (Mt 8:10; 15:28), but to say that it moves Him is misleading. The last time I checked, it was the MOUNTAIN that faith was supposed to move, not God, (Mt 17:20; 21:21).

Stop thinking you’re going to move God with your “audacious” faith. Before you ever thought of that prayer point, that miracle, that need… before you even got Born Again, God has already moved and provided it for you. That’s an implication of the Christmas Story: God was the first to move.

The “Messiah” wasn’t Israel’s idea, it was God’s. Salvation wasn’t man’s request, it was God’s provision. Adam never asked for an atoning sacrifice, and you never needed to tell God you needed deliverance from sin, the solution was made available before your saw the need.

That big prayer request of yours may require bold and audacious faith to you, but it isn’t bold and audacious for God. Not just because He’s Almighty and can do anything; but because, well, He thought of it first. It’d be absurd if Adam was trying to use faith to make God give him a wife, when it was God that noticed he needed one.

Beloved, whether it’s a baby or a business, your marriage or your ministry, etc. know that we’re not trying to get anything from God, He’s the one offering His gifts to us.

Even the faith for the miracle is a gift from Him. When we stop seeing our faith as a way to make God do something, and instead see it as a key given to us by Him with which we can access all of His graciously-provided bounties, we’ll stop trying to move Him and move the mountains instead.

“If God didn't hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn't gladly and freely do for us?” – Rom 8:32  (MSG)

May the blessings of God be upon you and yours this Christmas, and always.

AMEN.

GREG ELKAN

Christmas Faith Lesson: It May Not Look Like It

...wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. – Lk 2:12

Lk 2:21-39 tells us of two different persons – a man (Simeon) and an old woman (Anna) – who had both been waiting and praying for the coming of the Messiah prophesised centuries ago. For Simeon, it was even prophesied that he would not see death before he saw Yahweh’s Messiah! So we can imagine his excitement when the Holy Spirit told him one day to go to the Temple because the Messiah child was going to be there.

Note, however, that the baby Simeon handled at the Temple was exactly that – a baby. There was no Harry-Potter like scar on his forehead, no hint of lightening in his eyes, no electricity cursing through your body as you lifted him up… no nothing. If Simeon had let go of the baby, it wouldn’t have executed a perfect backflip and landed on its feet. No. Jesus would have smacked his head on the hard Temple pavement and pierced the air with crying.

Alternately, put yourself in Anna’s shoes. Decades of fasting and praying, only to be shown a baby. “Great! It’s a fine, chubby boy. Now what?”

Beloved, the beginning of your miracle may not look like it. The prophesied ministry, the dream marriage, the envisioned business enterprise, etc. may not arrive spectacularly. The picture you saw so vividly in your heart may not look like what you’re seeing in your hand: you were expecting to see God in the flesh, but what you see is just flesh – and a rather vulnerable one at that.

Others may have had a faith-boost to help them. The shepherds in the field wouldn’t have had a problem believing that Jesus was the Messiah; not after all that spectacular display and angelic fanfare. But most of the time, we find ourselves like Simeon and Anna; having nothing to hold on to except God’s sure Word, and a blob of bouncy flesh.

This is where we can learn from them. They didn’t act disappointed; instead they both rejoiced and celebrated the baby as the fulfilment of the prophecy. Your miracle has already started, Beloved. Like the babe in a manger, it need not look spectacular; or even miraculous (Simeon and Ana were unaware the babe was virgin-born), but it is it. Celebrate and believe in the little currently in your hand, and see the great and powerful things that will follow.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

What You Need To Conceive Your Miracle

“So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground”; – Mar 4:26

When Mary reminded the Angel Gabriel that she was a virgin and thus unable to give birth to this “Jesus” that he talked about, he replied that she’ll conceive because the Holy Spirit shall come upon her. However, Scripture gives us no record that anything dramatic happened to Mary after the angel left; all we do know was that a few weeks later she was walking around with a bump, (Lk 1:35;41). That means that, for all practical purposes, a baby started forming inside Mary the moment she believed what the angel said!

In explaining the Parable of the Sower much later in Lk 8:11, Jesus said “The seed is the word of God…” Even the Apostle Peter in 1Pt 1:23 compared the word of God to an incorruptible “seed”. What happened to Mary literally is what happens to us metaphorically; the faith for your miracle comes when the seed of the Word of God is planted in your heart; because “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom 10:17).

An expectation for a miracle that was not provoked or instigated by exposure to God’s Word is probably just daydreaming or fantasy. It’s God’s will that everyone lives a good life (Jn 10:10); but your good life is not my good life, so your prayer point cannot be my prayer point. It’s under the atmosphere of the word of God that our faith is provoked to specifically believe for “the things that are freely given to us of God” (1Co 2:12).

And just as a woman mustn’t expose herself to just about any man in the physical, you mustn’t expose your heart to just about any “word”. Real, God-inspired miracles are only birthed in an atmosphere of faith-filled, grace-based words of the New Covenant.

So, Beloved, “Let the word of CHRIST dwell in you richly” (Col 3:16); read the word daily, listen to good messages, read grace-filled books and devotionals, etc... and watch your spiritual life birth a miracle that’ll be just as spectacular (at least for your level) as a virgin giving birth to a baby.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

What Christmas Teaches About Faith

...has He spoken, and shall He not make it good? – Num 23:19

Admittedly, the Christmas story is full of wonderful metaphors and rich symbolism. And among the myriad of lessons that we can draw from it is one that’s most profound: the lesson of faith.

Faith is vital to life. As Believers, everything that pertains to life and godliness has been provided for us in Christ (Eph 1:3; 2Pe 1:3,4); all we have to do is receive it by faith. Each one of us has something that we’re believing God for; a life-transforming miracle that we expect to happen in our life based on a scriptural revelation, a word of knowledge, a prophecy, etc.

Whatever it is, you need faith to birth that miracle; that’s why the Christmas story is inspiring and encouraging. Because if there’s one thing it tells us, it’s that God keeps to His word.

It started with the promise to Eve in Eden, then through Moses, David, Isaiah and the prophets. For years, the Israelites heard and heard the prophecy that a Messiah was going to come to deliver them from their enemies. Judges came and left, kings came and left, prophets came and left; as a matter of fact, there was even no prophetic voice for 400 years before Angel Gabriel came.

And just like that, a virgin girl in one small town conceived, and a 4,000-year-in-the-making prophecy began to unfold.

Beloved, you may be going through a period of silence right now. It may look as if nothing is happening. You may feel as though God has reneged on His promise to you. But like the open-eyed prophet, Balaam, declared “God is not like people. He tells no lies. He is not like humans. He doesn’t change his mind. When he says something, he does it. When he makes a promise, he keeps it,” (Num 23:19 GW).

Go back to your prayer closet today and pray about that long sought after miracle, for as sure as the first Christmas, it will surely come to pass.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

The (Not) True Meaning of Christmas

“For this purpose the Son of God was manifested...” – 1Jn 3:8

It’s Christmas Season again! Time for carols and cantatas, hymns and hollies, plastic doves and mistletoes, rice cookies and roast Turkeys… No, right?

We’re all aware of the perennial debate Christians hold over the blatant commercialisation of the festival that’s supposed to commemorate the birth of Christ and how it’s been turned into a merchandising pretext. We can’t also pretend to be ignorant of the attempt to secularise the Christmas holiday (literally “Holy Day” in Old English) into an inoffensive, politically correct end-of-year festival.

Nevertheless, aren’t some of our counters in reminding people of the “True meaning” of Christmas just as scripturally incorrect and  spiritually effete? How many times have you heard people say that Christmas is about “giving”? Or about “selfless love”, or about “family”, or about “caring for the downtrodden of society”, etc.? The Bible never said any of those things. That’s like saying your father sent you to school to demonstrate paternal responsibility, or to show parental love, etc. If you asked him, he’d more than likely tell you he sent you to school to get you EDUCATED, period! Whatever mushy reasons you take away from his actions is left to you.

Similarly, if we asked our Father (the One in Heaven this time), to tell us the reason why Jesus was born two thousand years ago, would He reply that it was to exemplify “human love and sacrifice”?

NO! He would say to us what the angel Gabriel said to Mary, the Christ Child was born to save us from our SINS! (Mat 1:21).

Granted, that probably wouldn’t earn you cheers at the office End-of-Year Dinner, but it does help for us to at least be aware of the distinction between a moral derivative lesson from and the “Real meaning of” CHRISTMAS.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN 

Beyond Love

...but of Power, and of Love, and of a Sound mind – 2Ti 1:7

God’s expression of power is bounded by His nature of Love. Nevertheless, His acts of Love are similarly only within the parameters of His Wisdom.

God’s love is perfect. It’s not our touchy-feely, mushy-gooey kind. When God acts in love, it is based on His Wisdom. Pr. 8:22-33 talks about God and “Wisdom”; it tells how “wisdom” was there right from the very foundations of the world. Wisdom is the principal (in Hebrew, literally “first”) thing (Pr 4:7). Before anything was created, there was wisdom. Wisdom is what dictates the expressions of Love. People who say, “If God is love why is there a Hell?” miss this part.

As Believer’s, our kind of love must be God’s kind, the kind instigated and coordinated by His wisdom. When we read the synoptic Gospels, we get the impression that Jesus – powerful “Son of God” that He was – just strolled around town healing anyone he saw and doing miracles indiscriminately. But John’s Gospel shows us that there was a deliberateness and selectivity to His miracles; (e.g. He visited the Temple severally but didn’t heal the lame man of Acts 3 even though scriptures say that man was there every day). Even the “feeding of the 5,000”, John points out, was more for a strategic reason than just compassion (Jn 6:4).

Beloved, there’s more to love than feeding the poor or opening orphanages. If we’re to be efficient stewards of God’s resources and effective channels of His love to the World, then our acts of love must go beyond human sentiments.

Even the most altruistic expression of human love is tainted. However, Believers who act according to God’s perfect love – who are directed and influenced by the wisdom of the Holy Spirit – will find their work and life to be focused, effective, and Heaven-sanctioned (Rom 8:6,7).

As you imitate His “godliness”, may you experience greater and more glorious dimensions of His blessings than you’ve ever seen.

AMEN.

Have a Blessed weekend.

GREG ELKAN

The 3 ‘Levels’ of God

Paul, in 2Tim 1:7, told Timothy that God’s Spirit that he had was not of fear but of “Power, of Love, and of a Sound Mind (good judgment or wisdom).” These three virtues have been presented as three progressive levels of God’s nature. You can look at it as 3 concentric circles with “Power” in the centre, surrounded by the circle of “Love”, which is also surrounded by “Wisdom”.

When people talk about “God”, all they think about is POWER. Think of any movie where the character all of a sudden gets to be God, what do they do? They pull up cars and mansions out of thin air; they disappear and appear at will, they listen in on people’s thoughts and smirk, etc.

However, there’s more to God than Power. If God’s just 'power' we would all have been heaps of ash by now (have you offended God lately?). 1Jn 4:8 says “God is love.” His interaction with us is not based on power. When He came to Earth as a man, He could have broken through the clouds, Giant hammer in hand and eyes blazing with lightning – Thor-style. But He didn’t. Instead, He placed Himself in the womb of a village girl, and grew up among us – wooing, pleading, reasoning. This is the true nature of God.

Elijah the prophet had God’s Spirit in him, but he settled for Power instead of love and called down fire on his would-be arresters. However, when Jesus’ disciples asked Him to do same to the Samaritans, He rebuked them, and said, “You know not what manner of Spirit you are of.” (2Ki 1:10-14; Lk 9:54,15).

This is a very vital lesson for those of us who minister in the office of a Prophet, or who are gifted with the power gifts, or generally every Believer anointed of God. The anointing of the Holy Spirit is not just power. When King Jeroboam raised his hands against an unnamed prophet, his hands became paralyzed; however, at Jesus' trial, a common soldier didn’t just raise his hands against Jesus but actually slapped Him! (1Ki 13:4; John 18:22). What happened to that soldier? NOTHING!

The anointing in that OT prophet is nothing compared to the one in Christ, yet Jesus' higher demonstration of the anointing is lacking today. Beloved, take your imitation of God to the next level; “Do as God does. After all, you are His dear children” (Eph 5:1 CEV).

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN 

Imitating His Trustfulness

Love never gives up; and its faith, hope, and patience never fail.

 – 1Cor 13:7 (GNB)

If I were Jesus, having spent over three years of my precious lifetime pouring myself into my 12 trusted disciples, I’d be pretty panicky at the prospect of my legacy if on the day of my death one of them betrays me, another denies me and the rest all scamper like scared rats at my arrest. These are the men that are to continue my work? These are supposed to be the pillars of the Church?

All those days and nights of parable preaching, unbelievable signs and miracles, exemplary lifestyle and leadership training... only to be abandoned when it matters most. They scuttled because some temple guards came for me, what’s going to happen when they come for them?

From this angle, we can forgive feminist conspiracy theorists who claim that after the resurrection, it was Mary Magdalene, the one who went seeking for Jesus’ body – not Peter, who had quickly returned back to his fishing – that Jesus commissioned to lead the Church. At least that fits more with the Gospel narrative...

From a human perspective that is.

But Jesus reveals a part of God’s nature that, though difficult to follow, is worth emulating – TRUST. In spite of what the disciples did, He still trusted them with the task of leading the Church, and the fact that we’re Believers today, two millennia later, shows they did a pretty good job of it.

He trusted Abraham, a pagan idol worshiper,

He trusted Moses, a runaway murderer,

He trusted Paul, the chief persecutor of His Church,

He trusted Peter, James and John...

He trusted YOU.

Beloved, we mustn’t be quick to give up on those under our tutelage or leadership: our children, our employees, our members... They mustn’t hold the impression that an axe is hovering over their head, ready to drop at the slightest blunder. Knowing that they have your trust will surely boost their confidence. It doesn’t mean they’ll now be willing to lay down their lives for your cause like the disciples of Jesus did for His, but you’ll certainly be better of for it.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN 

Imitating His Humbleness

Be you therefore followers of God, as dear children – Eph 5:1

Many will find it odd that God, awesome as He is, is being termed "humble"; which is somewhat ironic, considering that what they call “awesome” is only the muted expression of His true majesty!

The psalmists, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit give several insights and hints into the sheer grandness of God. Ps 99:2 says, “The LORD is... high above all the people,;” and 113:6 (CEV) says, “He looks down to see the heavens and the earth”!

God’s greater than Earth, along with its star and all the other hosts of stars in their inconceivably plethoric quantities. God’s also greater than all of the heavens; not just the seraphs, cherubs and the angelic hosts, but heaven itself.

The heavens are glorious, but His glory is exalted above them, (Ps 148:13). And as one theologian puts it, “His exaltation enhances His condescension”. That a God of such magnificence should concern Himself with lowly (and unceasingly impudent) creatures like us is a mystery of epic proportions.

Even the angels, who enjoy greater glimpses of God’s greatness, do not have the intimacy and elevation that humans enjoy in our interaction with Him. So the next time you’re tempted to consider a certain man or woman as beneath your status, think of the mighty God who scandalously humbled Himself to come to your level.

Movies, (like the Hollywood blockbuster, Bruce Almighty), that try to show the impossibility of a man being God use tropes like listening to millions of prayers simultaneously or being at several places at once; however, I believe one of the more inimitable nature of God is His willingness to condescend to the level of the lowliest of the low.

This is a nature of God that we His children must all display. While the people of the world pride themselves in statuses and grasp at any form of prestige or exclusivity that they find, we must develop a reputation for humbleness; for our willingness to reach out and be with anybody – no matter how low in life they are...

That we may be the children of our Father, which is in Heaven (Mt 5:45).

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

Partakers of His Divine Nature

Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. – Mt 5:48

We often contrast “Godliness” with “Worldliness” in our sermons. Nevertheless, if “worldliness” means “living like the world”, doesn’t that mean “godliness” means “living like God”? Precisely how does one even presume to live like God? How does one imitate Inimitability Himself?

God’s more glorious than a thousand suns and more majestic than a thousand sunsets. God’s the One whom Paul described as “the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; Who only has immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man has seen, nor can see” (1Ti 6:15,16).

His might is immeasurable and His glory ineffable. There’re no words big enough to describe His Bigness and no songs sweet enough to express His sweetness. To be like God is to be one word: “PERFECT”, which is impossible.

But isn’t that’s exactly what our Lord demanded of us in His Sermon on the Mount? (Mt 5:48). The context of that injunction, however, shows that what Christ expected of us is not a replication of God’s power and awesomeness, but of God’s nature: His love, His patience, His mercy, etc.

The moment we believed in Christ we became sons of God, possessors of His divine nature and character (Jn 1:12; 2Pt 1:4). Hence godliness is the only natural expression for us. This is why you must endeavour, in all your dealings with the world, that you’re displaying God’s nature to them; as Christ said, “That you may be the children of your Father who is in heaven” (Mt 5:45).

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

The Vengeful, Sadistic ‘God’ of Christians

God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. – 1Jn 1:5

We do not have sufficient knowledge to understand the complex spiritual mysteries that necessitate the existence of an eternal Hell. But, one thing we do know for sure is that it was created for the Devil and his angels, not for us, and that God is not willing that any should go there (Mt 25:41; 2Pt 3:9).

But Satan, trying to make the most of his damnable fate, has spun his own narrative around Hell. Thanks to centuries of his ‘Fake Revelation’ machinery, rather than being his place of incarceration, Hell’s now known to be his Torture HQ. He’s turned the story round, and now he’s the one who tortures people and he’s the one who holds the prerogative of sending people to Hell, not God. People now fear the Devil more than they fear God (Mt 10:28).

And for those who do acknowledge that God’s in charge of Hell, he’s got a counter-narrative too. To them, God’s been portrayed as sadistic and vengeful. A God who sentences people to eternal torture for the flimsiest of reasons, (like not paying a tithe), and who’s created unique sophisticated torture chambers of unimaginable horrors for each type of sin; (tortures too horrendous for me to repeat in this devotional). Pause, dearly Beloved, and think; is your knowledge of the experience of sinners in Hell from the Bible?

This enduring image of a cruel, merciless ‘God’ – crafted by ‘Fake Revelations’ and perpetuated by unwitting Christians and preachers – is what is keeping many people (especially atheists) away from the Church today.

We need to wrest the Infernal narrative back from the hands of the Devil and his mendacious proxies. We need to spread the TRUE message of the Gospel across the globe, so that everybody – regardless of their social status or standing – should know that God’s not out to get them, but that on the contrary He’s gone ALL-OUT to save them. He’s sent His Son to take on Himself their just punishment; so that once purged from their iniquities, they can now spend an eternity with Him in glory and ineffable bliss.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

The Myth of Dualism

I am the LORD, and there is none else, – Is 45:5

Dualism is the religious/philosophical principle that two opposed and antagonistic forces of good and evil are in control of this world. This philosophy is found in Zoroastrianism and in many native religions.

In Eastern religions, it’s typified by the combination of YIN (darkness, negativity, femininity) and YANG (light, heat, motivation, masculinity). These two forces are said to be opposite and complementary and are thought to exist in varying proportions in all things. The Yin-Yang symbol, (an example is the circle at the centre of the South Korean flag), depicts this supposed Good/Evil inter-relationship.

Unfortunately, many have transferred this principle into Christianity. They’ve created a worldview with God on one side and the Devil on the other. But Nothing could be further from the truth. The conflict depicted in scripture is not between Satan and God but between Satan and Man! The battle in Genesis 3 was between two creations – Adam and Satan, with God as their judge. The notion of Satan being opposite to God isn’t from scripture.

Far from depicting two equally opposing forces, we see the Bible reference Christ virtually on every page, yet has only scant references to Satan, (it mentions “Isaac” more times than Satan/Devil/Serpent/etc. combined)!

If we’re to be bluntly honest, much of what we think we know about demons, Hell Fire and the kingdom of darkness come from extra-biblical sources; like Dante Alighieri’s Inferno and John Milton’s Paradise Lost (with updated insertions from modern day “Deliverance” Testimonies). Theologians, for example, are still not agreed on where demons come from or even what they are.

This manifest understating of the Devil and his world is deliberate, and we would do well to follow the Bible’s cue. Satan is always after attention; but Jesus, Paul and the Early believers never gave it to him (Mk 1:25,34; Lk 4:41; Act 16:16-18).

Beloved, let Christ be the centre of our lives: our devotion, our confession, our prayer and our message. It’s the knowledge of Christ that saves, not of the Devil. And as we look to Christ, we’ll be changed into His image by His Spirit.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

Confronting Hell’s PR

And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, except Jesus only. – Mat 17:8

Satan has a thriving and effective PR department; its purpose is not to represent the Devil in the world, but to re-present him to the world; to give him a new look, a new persona, a facelift of sorts.

Image is everything to the Devil. He may be completely defeated and vanquished, but like his daughter, Jezebel, who chose to put makeup on even as her executioner approached (2Ki 9:30), his appearance is important to him.

Every year, his Dept of Information, (under the auspices of the Ministry of Infernal Affairs), keeps rolling out books, movies, visions, prophecies, messages, etc. that give their own version and side of spiritual reality.

This is why a distinguishing feature of Hell-inspired testimonies is the portrayal of immense power of demons over believers. After listening to a so-called “deliverance” confession, you feel more vulnerable than ever before; all of a sudden you now see demons everywhere; and every man of God that doesn’t mention Hell does so because he gets his powers from there. (Paul, the handkerchief miracle worker of Acts 19:12, obviously falls into this category).  

Deliverance testimonies now do to us what documentaries from “declassified” or “leaked” documents of the U.S. Pentagon are meant to do to the Russians: scare them into non-confrontation.

“We have you surrounded”, “We have so many spy satellites we need satellites to keep track of them”, we almost nuked you 20 years ago and changed our mind – but were too lazy to dismantle the rig”...

When Hell PR’s in charge of a testimony, little mention is made of the host of angels around a Believer; out of sight will be the overwhelming power of Resurrection on the Christian; up front and centre rather will be sophisticated demonic operations, complex rituals, terrible sprites and amazing creatures.

Beloved, it’s high time we weighed testimonies, visions and prophecies based on the edifying value of their content. They all must be about, centred on, and focused on Christ and His finished work on the Cross. Because as Rev 19:10 tells us, “the testimony of Jesus IS the spirit of prophecy.”

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

A Divine Revelation of Heresy

God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar. – Rom 3:4

Throughout Church History, we’ve had genuine revelations and visions given to us by the Spirit to encourage and edify the Body. However, for each genuine prophecy there’re several bogus, Satan-inspired lies that seek to undermine the legitimacy of the Word of God and the Finished work of Christ.

Why do these lies thrive in Churches and among Christian circles? Because we either tolerate them or are reluctant to confront them because they talk about Hell, Heaven, or Holiness.

We find it hard to believe that people could lie through their teeth about God; or that Jesus could allow a demon to impersonate Him and speak in His name; or assume that it’s counterproductive for Satan to warn people about Hell.

Isn’t it interesting that though Paul prophesied deceptions in the Endtimes and also that Satan disguises himself as an “Angel of Light” (2Co 11:14; 1Tim 4:1) yet we don’t see this ‘Angel’ in the Church today? Is it possible that we missed him because he calls himself “Jesus” and has been appearing in visions to people all over the world?

Why should we confront every 'divine' revelation? 

-          Because there is no other “Divine” revelation other than the Bible (Rev 22:18),

-          Because we’re commanded in scripture to judge all things (1Th 5:21),

-          Because accepting a patently unbiblical revelation opens the door to satanic manipulation and doctrinal error in the Church (2Co 2:11),

-          Because we’re to look to the Word, not “revelations” to know the will of God (2Tim 3:16),

-          Because scripture itself is sufficient for the purpose of evangelism (2Tim 3:16),

-          Because Jesus Himself placed little value in their ability to change people (Luk 16:3),

-          Because these are the Last Days we were warned about in scripture (1Tim 4:1).

Beloved, 1Jn 4:1 says we should, “believe not every spirit, but test the spirits whether they are of God”.

When we maintain the practice of holding up every "Revelation" to the Word of God, we'll save both ourselves and also them that hear us (1Ti 4:16)

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN 

The Infernal Propaganda Machine

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. – 2Ti 3:1

We live in the age of information; the age of Google search engine, of “Facebook Live”... and of FAKE news. The audacity and impact of ‘Fake News’ today is nothing short of overwhelming. It has taken over the entire Internet and hardly a day passes without you receiving a ‘Fake News’ article on WhatsApp or Facebook. From bogus cures for cancer, to unfounded claims of the “7 Black presidents before Obama”, to posts about the deleterious effects of drinking cold water.

And while we’re at that, ‘Bishop Oyedepo’ and Pastors ‘Kumuyi’ and ‘Adeboye’ (with the occasional input from ‘Joyce Meyer’) never cease to send us lurid, salacious revelations and visions of Heaven, Hell, the Rapture, etc. just for you to forward to all of your contacts, lest you be considered a bonafide child of Satan.

‘Fake News’ and its religious cousin, ‘Fake Revelations’, are more than just harmless pranks by people preying on the fear, ignorance and prejudices of others; they’re marks of a demonic spirit of lies and falsehood being unleashed on the world today.

God is a God of Truth, (Dt 32:4; Ps 31:5); Jesus IS Truth and was full of Truth (Jn 14:6; 1:14); and the Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of Truth (Jn 14:17). The Devil, on the other hand, is not just a liar but the father of it; Jesus says when the Devil lies, “he speaks his native language” (Jn 8:44 NIV).

Therefore, when someone sits down in his room sending out “evangelism posts and prophecies” in the name of ‘Kumuyi’, expecting you to “share after you type ‘Amen’”, you can tell which spirit is indwelling that person.

Beloved, these are the Last Days of which the Apostle Paul warned about (1Tim 4:1). Many are “giving heed to deceitful spirits, and doctrines of demons” and calling it evangelism. We’re being inundated with lies all over that it’s hard to believe anything anymore; which is actually the object of it all: our Faith.

So, let’s be aware of this infernal propaganda machine, and guard our hearts with all diligence; for out of it (our hearts) are the issues of life. (Pro 4:23).

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN 

As Products of Grace

Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. – Mat 5:7

Ruth exists only in Ruth. She’s mentioned nowhere else in scripture outside of her eponymous book... Except, of course, in Matthew, (Mt 1:5).

Considering that Matthew wrote his Gospel originally for Jews, it’s strange that he chose to include women in his list since Jews generally do not include women in their genealogies. And even stranger, instead of listing great Jewish matriarchs like Sarah, Rebecca or Rachael, all the listed women were gentile! Tamar, Rahab and Ruth were non-Jews; and the fourth, Bathsheba, was married to a Hittite and may even have been a gentile herself since her name had a Canaanite origin.

Far from concealing these despicables in Jesus’ bloodline, Matthew deliberately brings them to the fore in the outset of his Gospel; to emphasise that EVERYONE has a chance under God’s grace.

He should know, since he himself is a product of grace. Before Jesus chose him, Matthew was a tax collector, a profession so despicable that members were completely ostracized by the Jews from all religious and social events. To the Jews, “Tax collector” and “sinner” was one and the same thing (Lk 7:34; 15:1-2). Yet, by grace and grace alone, this tax collector’s name is eternally embedded in the foundation of the New Jerusalem in Heaven, (Rev 21:14)

This is why we can understand Boaz’s favour towards Ruth, a gentile woman living among Jews. Considering that he, too, was a product of grace – in the literal sense of the word.

Boaz was the son of Salmon, a Hebrew leader, and Rahab – the famed Canaanite harlot of Joshua 2! We wouldn’t have known this interesting fact but for our friend Matthew who points out in his genealogy that, “...Nahshon begat Salmon; And Salmon begat Boaz OF RAHAB” (Mat 1:4,5).

This is how it’s meant to be; products of grace should be the first to show it to others. When we’re conscious that we’re forgiven much, we’ll find ourselves being more gracious to others. The world should see that spirit of grace and mercy in us, and our actions should show glimpses of God’s love to them. As Products of Grace, let’s be conduits of grace to the hurting world around us. And the “God of all grace” will surely bless us as we do so in Jesus’ name.

AMEN.

GREG ELKAN

God’s ‘Problem’ With Firstborns

As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. – Rom 9:13

Have you noticed that firstborns in the Bible seem to have a disadvantage with God? Whenever a pair of characters comes before God, the younger usually was the one to obtain favour. Look at Cain and Abel, Ishmael and Isaac, Esau and Jacob, Reuben and Judah, Zarah and Pharez, Manasseh and Ephraim, Aaron and Moses ... the First Adam and the Last Adam (Christ). The younger always seem to be the one with whom God was well pleased.

Speaking of “well pleased”, the LORD told Samuel He’d found a man after His heart in David, (1Sa 13:14). So, when David was to be anointed, all Jesse’s seven sons would naturally be skipped before reaching him. However, notice that Eliab, the firstborn, was not just ‘not chosen’, he was specifically “Rejected”. In other words, even if God hadn’t chosen David, Eliab would still be the last person in Jesse’s house to be king!

Why such disfavour? 1Sam 16:6-7 gives us an insight. Eliab had the stamina, the physique and the charisma of a king; furthermore, he was the firstborn and thus first in line for any promotion to come to his family. In essence, he expected to be anointed king because he was ‘qualified’.

Could this be the common thread among all firstborns in the Bible? This sense of entitlement, this claim on the blessing, this feeling of possessing an inalienable right to the inheritance? Lk 7:47 says, “She that’s forgiven much, loves much”. Gratitude and Qualification don’t mix too well.

It’s difficult to imagine a ‘King Eliab’ dancing foolishly before the ark of the LORD (2Sa 6:16). It’s hard to imagine God being called “the fear of Ishmael” (Gen 31:42,53). And, yes, it’s difficult to imagine the outcome if the wealthy Boaz had fallen for a young, drop-dead-gorgeous Bethlehemite damsel as opposed to a widow from abominable Moab.

Beloved, God always chooses the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and the weak things to confound the mighty (1Co 1:27); He always uses the least likely to do the most mighty.

Let’s be careful, therefore, lest we walk around life with a ‘firstborn’ mentality. For “God resists the proud, but gives grace unto the humble.” (Jas 4:6).

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

Blessed Whether You Know It or Not

By this I know that you favour me... – Ps 41:11

The story of Ruth is one of spectacular favour. A down-and-out second-class citizen, a member of a cursed nation, becoming the chosen bride and partner of a wealthy, godly landowner. What an amazing grass-to-grace narrative.

And the “grace” didn’t stop there. It’s glorious enough that this unusual union resulted in the birth of a beautiful bouncing baby boy, but that boy’s grandson would eventually become the greatest king that Israel had ever known – David. And because the King of Kings – the expected Messiah – was prophesied to come from the loins of David, this Moabites became a bona fide member of Christ’s ancestry. Hallelujah!

But Ruth’s favour did not begin when Boaz set his eyes on her. Ruth had been favoured long before she even stepped foot in Bethlehem!

We generally tend to measure favour by physical, tangible tokens: a brand new car, a debt cancellation, a promotion at the work place...

However, we cannot only measure favour in material blessings. Sometimes favour is discerned when you recognise that you survived something that destroyed others. If God didn’t favour Ruth while she was in Moab, the thing that killed her husband, brother-in-law and father-in-law could as well have killed her. She survived and thrived even in an atmosphere of demonism and divine disapprobation.

She may not have been conscious of it, but the favour still kept her. Her destiny was not an afterthought or a chance happening. The favour of God was trained upon her head while she was plodding the dusty streets of Moab; keeping her preserving her, leading her to her eventual place of rest.

Beloved, each time you survive is proof that God is preserving you for a reason. You may not have a dramatic testimony to wow a church audience, and your circumstances right now may not look altogether spectacular, but know for a surety that God has you covered. His favour is resting on you, and will not lift until it sees you enter your place of rest and permanent provision. 

You shall prosper, you shall succeed, you shall fulfil destiny in Jesus’ name

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

The God of the Haps

What’s the price of a pet canary? Some loose change, right? And God cares what happens to it even more than you do. – Mat 10:29

Secularists often derogatorily accuse Christians of invoking The-God-of-the-Gaps in any physical phenomenon currently unexplained by science. That is, if there’s a gap in current scientific knowledge on how something works, then that proves only God could have done it.

Of course, they relish having this ‘God’ because, for every new scientific discovery that explains how certain things work, the “gap” keeps shrinking until someday (theoretically) there’ll be no room to claim God did anything.

But God is God, both of the mysterious and of the mundane, He’s in charge both of the creation of life and of the life of creation... He’s more a God-of-the-haps than of the gaps.

The KJV’s rendition of Ruth 2:3 says when Ruth decided to go look for grain, “her HAP was to light on a part of the field belonging unto Boaz.”

This chance, seemingly unplanned act of Ruth in wandering into the field of a wealthy kinsman is what set the wheels of her destiny in motion.

Rom 8:28 makes us know that, for the Believer, “Nothing Just happens”; ALL things constantly work together for good. Your destiny’s not at the mercy of random, arbitrary happenstances, it’s in the hands of the “God of the Haps”.

>  the God that made the Shunammite woman approach the king of Israel just as Gehazi was talking favourably about her to him, (2Ki 8:5).

>  the God that made King Xerxes lose sleep and inquire to see the royal archives, which just happened to contain the acts of Mordecai, (Est 6:1-2).

>  the God that sent Joseph ahead of his family into Egypt to preserve them from extinction (Gen 50:20).

> the God that trained Moses in Pharaoh’s palace for 40 years in preparation for his calling (Act 7:22).

Beloved, God’s thoughts towards you are good and not evil. He has a glorious, exciting future outlined; all you need to do is have the faith to hand over the reins of control and trust Him every day to bring about His plan for your life.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

RUTHless Theology

ruth·less [adjective]: having or showing no pity or mercy; (cruel, callous, or brutal)  – Microsoft Encarta Dictionary

So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, with her – Rth 1:22

It may come across as odd that “Ruth” is one of the books some contend have no place in the Bible. Because of its close link to Judges (the events in Ruth happened during, not after, the seemingly senseless chaos there), some scholars see both books as “unworthy of God” and “of little or no value to 21^st century readers”.

We today, being mostly gentile by physical ancestry, may not be able to appreciate the disturbing nature of the Ruth narrative. It’s not without significance that her name is associated with “Moab” 6 out of the 12 times she’s mentioned in the book. It seems to be a deliberate underscoring that, chaste and virtuous as this woman may be, we need to note that she’s from MOAB.

Just as a quick reminder,

> The Moabites are the descendants of Moab, the son born from a horrible incestuous relationship between Lot and his first daughter (Gen 19:37).

> It was the king of Moab, Balak, that employed Balaam to curse the Israelites while they were in the wilderness (Num 22-24).

> It was Moabite women that seduced the Israelites into lewdness, which resulted in 24,000 deaths (Num 25:1-3);

> The Moabites, throughout the Old Testament, were notorious for their paganism and abominable practices...

> Ruth, the famed “faithful daughter-in-law”, was a Moabitess.

Hence the scandal, hence the outrage, hence the rejection of her story’s legitimacy. But a Bible without Ruth would be ruthless!

Witty puns aside, a theology that does not give room for the amazingly scandalous grace of God, a belief system that doesn’t factor that we’re all equally unworthy of mercy, a doctrine that prejudges people based on their antecedents and gives them no room for forgiveness... is cruel, callous, and, yes, ruthless.

Ruth’s story may be disturbing to the holier-than-thous in the church; but for the rest of us that can honestly concede that we aren’t the most qualified for God’s favour, and admit to having a history that we should be rightly ashamed of, the book of Ruth offers us hope, and peace and confidence.

 “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. “  – Rom 15:4

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

The Greatest Proof That God Exists

A British teacher once told of a time when a particular girl in his chemistry class said she didn’t believe in atoms. Regardless of all his lessons and explanations, she still remained unbelieving. Then he gave her a book on atoms. That did the trick. Some days later, she was back and said she now understood the concept.

He wasn’t particularly thrilled with her change of mind, though. Because he realised she had more respect for the book than for him. She believed what he – her science teacher – had said only after someone else confirmed it.

This incident perfectly illustrates the problem we create when we try to use logic, history or physical phenomena to prove the Bible’s inspiration.

Heb 11:1 says “FAITH is the substance of things hoped for, THE EVIDENCE of things not seen.” As a Believe-er, you do not need any other evidence that the Bible is God’s word; your faith IS the evidence!

We know the Bible is inspired because 2Ti 3:16 says “All scripture is given by inspiration of God.” This may sound like circular reasoning, considering that we’re using the Bible to prove the Bible. But the only evidence we can use to prove the Bible to be true is the Bible itself. This is because there is no higher level of information. If there were, then that fact would undermine the authority of the Bible, which does indeed claim to be the highest authority.

Let’s say, for example, you have an atheist who does not share with you your belief in God. If, after a series of scientific and ontological arguments, you end up convincing him that there’s a God, you’ve unwittingly placed both philosophy and science above the word of God. You’re in essence saying, “You won’t believe what the Bible says? OK, maybe you’ll believe if I present a higher authority...”

In the secular world, we present “Evidences” (exhibits) to a Judge or magistrate. So, by presenting “evidence” of the existence of God to a sceptic, you’re essentially making him or her the judge. You’re taking God to their court of law and He’ll win or lose based on the strength of your case.

But the sceptic is not the judge, God is. Similarly, whatever proof we try to present on the inspiration and inerrancy of scripture, it mustn’t be at the detriment of the authority of the Bible itself. There’s a limit to proof. Therefore, “let God be true, but every man a liar;” (Rom 3:4)

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

Platinum Incredulity

All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. – Joh 1:3

It was billed, “The greatest fireworks show in the universe”. The major News Media outlets earlier this week were all agog about the announcement by scientists of the observation of the collision of two neutron stars far, far away.

Neutron stars are special stars that are unique because of their density – as dense as all the matter of Mount Everest packed into a teaspoon. And when neutron stars slam together, all kinds of things burst out: gamma rays, X-rays, radio waves – and apparently, GOLD and PLATINUM.

We covered the Personal Incredulity fallacy previously here on TWFT, but it bears some repetition in light of this news. Personal Incredulity is saying that because one finds something difficult to understand, it’s therefore untrue.

Gen. 1:1 states clearly and unequivocally that, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Bible critics and sceptics say they find such explanation for the origin of the Universe to be utterly incredible. But they’re only being duplicitous considering that it takes an equal (actually, more) amount of faith to believe their own explanation for the origin of things.

For example, the collision of the two neutron stars is said to have “created a cloud of GOLD DUST many times more massive than the Earth”! Here’s a pair of mindless, lifeless, absolutely chaotic mass of gas being credited with the ability to reorganise the intricate subatomic structure of hydrogen/helium atoms to create the even more complex orbitals of heavier elements like gold.

We cannot presume to say that we know how all the Gold and Platinum in the Earth was created; but neither can the atheistic evolutionist. And when all factors have been considered, it takes less incredulity to believe God’s word that they came from an Intelligent, Purposeful Being than to theorise that they were the product of mindless, insane amount of condensed energy.

Confronting just-so theories of origins does not make us intellectually challenged or needlessly controversial; on the contrary it shows a willingness to stick with the Truth – regardless of how non-politically correct it may be.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN 

The Composition/Division Fallacy

In that he says, A new covenant, he has made the first old. – Heb 8:13

A Fallacy of Composition arises when a person assumes that what’s true about one part of something has to be applied to all, or other, parts of it. For example, it’s a Composition Fallacy to state that because atoms are invisible, therefore all things made up of atoms are equally invisible.

It’s a classic logical fallacy outlined by Aristotle, the 4^th century B.C. philosopher much revered by secular sceptics. However, they seem to hold a double standard on this fallacy when it comes to the Bible.

A perennial attack on the Bible is the listing out of the peculiar Laws of Moses, the ‘Holy War’ narrative of the conquest of Canaan, the anarchic stories in the book of Judges, etc. And claim that the Bible therefore, is barbaric, cruel, and crude.

But the Bible itself clearly places a distinction between its Old and its New Testaments (Heb 8:13) and the author of the book of Judges repeatedly clarifies that “In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” (Jdg 17:6; 18:1; 19:1; 21:25).

The sceptics, though, would have none of that. To them, whatever the Bible says in one place applies to all. This odd insistence of theirs is more out of unscrupulousness than of naivety and would not hold in a secular court of law.

Besides extracting words and narratives outside out of their original contexts, they also cherry-pick the portions of scripture that best suit their deprecatory agenda. They’d cite the curse of Eve’s subjection under Adam (after the Fall), but conveniently ignore the fact that both were declared “one flesh” in the previous chapter. They’d cite the 10^th commandment and say it places women on the same level as property; but ignore the unique protection it offers them among women in such an ancient patriarchal climate.

Nevertheless the Bible itself is its bests defence. It is brutal in its honest narratives, yet clear in the place each has in the grand overarching story of our creation, fall and redemption through the birth, death and resurrection of Christ.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN